Adios the 4Runner

That's a tough one, but when one looks at the cost of a new road legal vehicle today and the devaluation of currency its a tougher call. IMO. Maybe you have a ready supply of good used vehicles in your part of the country to mitigate that a bit, but out here good used vehicles have gone crazy for price. The economy is going weak so maybe that will help, but I think that's a mixed bag. When the economy is weak more people who have to have a vehicle buy a used one to get by instead of buying new.

4Runner. At first I thought you were talking about an ATC/V. Then I realized Toyota 4Runner SUV. Any options for a total engine change Like rebuild the mounts and drop a 350/turbo350 in it and register it as a classic or collector plate? Not old enough? I don't even know if that's possible like it was with the old Land Cruisers.

I'm hoping to find a private seller ... we're looking for something older than most want , probably no newer than 2006 or 2007 . Newer than that is where the prices get crazy .

Not quite old enough for an antique tag here , gotta be over I think

40 years now . I grandfathered in with the 1990 Ultra and my '86 GMC pickup . I don't think the engine compartment is big enough for a 350 ... and since it's a 4WD the hydramatic is out too . I'm going to be real picky about the next car ideally I would love another 4Runner , I really like this SUV and Toyota has a great rep with their 5VZ motor . If this unit had 100k less miles I'd be fixing it ...

Is it worth trying some of that crack sealant that's sold for cases like this.

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Must be a lot of flood damaged stuff around of late. Might find a

4Runner that you could swap parts back and forth with. Or just something you could get going again with your skill set and ambition :)

Yeah, I do seem to recall the old Land Cruiser retros use an adapter plate or a semi custom bell housing with the stock transmission. Not really my thing so forgive my ignorance.

Yeah, I know special plates historic/collector/etc plates vary from state to state. I know my cousin in another state said he ran collector plates on just about everything to avoid headaches.

If the frame and body are solid I DEFINITELY would repair or replace the engine. Repowering with non-toyota powerplant is possible but not common or easy. I'd be looking around for a wreck. -or a low mileage rustout from the northeast

Mileage doesn't mean much if it's been maintained, and even early

2000 'Runners are going for crazy prices around here. P'Ups too.

The engine was used from '95 to '04 inTacos and 'Runners

What many don't know is the 'Cruiser 6 cyl "F" engine was made under licence from GM - as was the tansmission and transfer case. Based on the Chevy stovebolt. The first "Cruiser clutch I replaced had GM stamped on it

Nope , the crack is thru both valve seats .

You just convinced me that getting another motor is a good idea ... I can have a used motor with 50-65000 here in a week or so for less than

3500 bucks - or a reman from O'Reilly for about the same money . I had no idea these were worth that kind of money , we paid around $4000 for this one 9 years ago .

Well , the ball is rolling , talked to a local shop about install and the vendor about payment and delivery . This is a low mileage motor from Japan with 50-65k miles . Might be almost broke in ! If I wasn't so old and tired I'd do it myself , but what the hall , it's only money .

Well , the ball is rolling , talked to a local shop about install and the vendor about payment and delivery . This is a low mileage motor from Japan with 50-65k miles . Might be almost broke in ! If I wasn't so old and tired I'd do it myself , but what the hall , it's only money . Snag

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Good luck! I hope I didn't mislead you. I have two old vehicles that I've kept fixing though neither is worth very much. Both have practical and useful features that newer and more stylish vehicles have dropped.

I figure that I break even if I spend 1/10th of the price of a new car each year on repairing the old one instead. In practice it's rarely exceeded a few hundred a year plus my labor. I bought the factory shop manuals for them so I'm not just guessing. The money saved is in the bank earning 4% interest for when I do need a new one, and every few years I test drive a possible replacement.

It was a combination of seeing what this car is worth , seeing what it would cost to replace it with something comparable , and the reasonable cost of a low mileage replacement motor . I've set aside 4k for the job which should cover everything - including someone else installing it . The motor is on the way and should be here Tuesday , the shop is all set up with a very reasonable labor bid . I'll need to supply some incidentals , oil and antifreeze , new filters and so on . Hmmm , I guess I better go ahead and get the sway bar mounts ... and reinstate the insurance I canceled when we were going to get another car .

I absolutely detest car shopping . they'll lie to your face and stick you in the back for a few bucks . The 4Runner has been dependable aside from one or two issues that I repaired for a few bucks . We put around

90,000 on it in 9 years , and aside from tires and oil changes I bet we haven't spent over 1500 bucks on maintenance . With a "new" motor I expect we'll get many more miles out of it .

Good move - and the "experienced" engine is likely to be a much better engine than the "rebuild". If the rust worm doesn't get them 4 Runners. like Land Cruisers, will go forever if you don't abuse them. Sure, you will have parts wear out, but with the price of ANY replacement truck or SUV you can keep the 'Runner going for less than half the interest cost on a new one. Heck, you can keep a FORD on the road for less than half the interest cost

23 years old, 383000km Ford Ranger - less than $500 a year on repairs and maintenance over the last 11 years - INCLUDING replacing the box!

The only rust on this one is the rear bumper . The car has spent it's whole life here in Arkansas where we rarely salt the roads . I do still need to replace the sway bar bushings , I had the parts in hand (along with all the stuff to do a head gasket replacement) but returned them when we thought we were going to buy something else . I should have replaced them when I did the links to the lower a frames a month ago ...

... Heck, you can keep a FORD on the road for less than half the interest cost

23 years old, 383000km Ford Ranger - less than $500 a year on repairs and maintenance over the last 11 years - INCLUDING replacing the box!

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Same here, most of the problems on my '91 with 250,000 km were from road salt rust. After I stopped commuting to work they ceased to get worse

The most puzzling was the 2.3l engine's ignition module. It intermittently threw Code 18 and the tach stopped working. Corrosion had crept under its intake manifold heatsink surface. I disassembled and cleaned every engine electrical connector (pull out the red plug) and replaced the coils, plugs and wires before buying the engine diagnostic manual on eBay and putting a scope on the signals it indicated. Then the dwell time showed as the problem and a new module fixed it. I mentioned it in case it happens to someone else.

One of the mounting screw froze into the aluminum manifold and broke off. I made a drill jig to remove it without losing the threads.

Why choose the low powered 2.3l? When I bought it I was commuting into Mass at stop-and-go to 40-50MPH and didn't need power as much as MPG, which could reach 28 vs under 20 for the six. Also it had a 7' bed, and had been on the lot half a year so they were quite willing to deal. Many people commuted in

4WD pickups which were a good defense against the Boston area's rude, aggressive driving and slippery winter conditions. The day after the Blizzard of '78 the roads in NH were completely clear, at the Mass border they changed to tire tracks in the snow.

Recently a shop told me that the old R12 A/C can be refilled with R134 without the fuss that was previously recommended. Does anyone know from successful experience? When it died I had a much easier NH commute without traffic jams so I just let it go. Hot weather here is mid 90's with a dew point around 70, tolerable when moving with the windows open. It's not quite the Gulf Coast but that's where it came from.